Veteran actor Harrison Ford is one of Hollywood’s biggest icons. The star has set the box office ablaze over many decades by appearing in multiple commercial blockbusters including being the titular face of the long running cult franchise, Indiana Jones. From being a fugitive to the President of the United States, Ford has covered the gamut of roles throughout his career across genres.
The Cowboys and Aliens star has done a wide variety of films including the Ridley Scott sci-fi thriller Blade Runner. While the film did not go on to do the big numbers financially, it earned praise for Ford for his performance. The actor though, confessed that it was one of the most challenging experiences of his career.
Working On Blade Runner Was A Nightmare For Harrison Ford
The 1982 sci-fi thriller Blade Runner directed by Ridley Scott was a pioneer of sorts in its genre but unfortunately did not become a big hit as expected, making only near 40 million dollars back in the day in its worldwide collection. The film though, garnered praise for its leading man Harrison Ford for his performance. Despite his success, The Fugitive actor confessed to having a torrid time on the sets of the film. Speaking of the controversy surround the voice narration technique in the movie, Ford said,
“When we started shooting it had been tacitly agreed that the version of the film that we had agreed upon was the version without voice-over narration. It was a f***ing nightmare. I thought that the film had worked without the narration. But now I was stuck re-creating that narration. And I was obliged to do the voice-overs for people that did not represent the director’s interests”.
Apart from this issue, Harrison Ford did not see eye to eye with Ridley Scott on other areas including the way his detective character’s arc was developed and the fate he met with in the end. According to Blade Runner 2049 director Denis Villeneuve, Ford and Scott’s constant bickering on their creative differences made for some funny entertainment.
Harrison Ford Termed Blade Runner 2049 As A More Relatable Film
Blade Runner 2049 directed by Denis Villeneuve which released in 2017, was a fairly recent sequel to Ridley Scott’s original Blade Runner. It took place several years after the events of the first film with Ryan Gosling as the lead. While Harrison Ford was originally slated to be part of the film, he eventually turned down the offer in an effort to get to know Villeneuve’s method of operation better before accepting to work with the director. When asked if Villeneuve’s film would be more relatable to audiences today than Ridley Scott’s 1982 original, Ford said,
“I do, because the first one was ahead of its time, and now is the time for this one. The issue of its immediate acceptance proved not to be a problem, because in the long term, it gained an enormous following and had a terrific impact on a generation of filmmakers and visual storytellers,”
Harrison Ford is now back in his Indiana Jones avatar in what will be his final appearance as the swashbuckling adventurer. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2023 and will make its worldwide release on June 30th, 2023.
Source: Vanity Fair
